The King's Weakness
By: Sailorjj07
A/n: Here I go with another crack pairing! Xillia 2 gave me a bunch of Gaius/Leia and pretty much Leia/Everyone feels. If you can't tell that Leia's my favorite Xillia character, clearly you haven't been paying attention, XP This fic MIGHT be spoilerific, but I don't think so? If you played the side quest that involves Gaius' younger sister, then this will make a lot more sense. By the way, yes, I know they have an age gap. But love knows no boundaries~!
Summary: Leia is sick of Gaius rescheduling interviews. This time, he has two options - an interview or revenge.
Disclaimer: I do not own!
"Talking"
'Thinking'
Actions
(Me!)
For six months, she had lived in the castle with Gaius and Rowen. For six months, she had traveled back and forth between the two worlds, so that she could get her work done and still have time to cover political meetings, royal parties, and any other important events for the King of Rieze Maxia.
For six freaking months, she had endured the harsh climates of Auj Oule, and even became a well-known figure within the country. Despite her steadily growing rapport with the people of her own realm, the wayward king hardly ever had time for her. It was driving Leia a little more than mad, to say the least.
It appeared she would just have to play hard-ball.
Now, Leia truly didn't have a cruel bone in her body. She had to remind herself of this when she asked his highness, King Gaius, to have lunch with her three days prior. That was all the time she had needed to prepare herself for the ultimate showdown with the man she had considered to be her friend.
It took her about two days to gather ingredients and prepare her personal sitting room for his visit. Leia cleaned the room from top to bottom, and even went so far to wear one of her nicest outfits for the day - a white tube top and gold studded cargo pants (her Idolmaster costume).
Looking around the room as the day arrived, Leia took a deep breath and steeled herself.
She was ready.
A knock at the door signaled Gaius' arrival, and Leia hurriedly answered the door. She smiled widely when she saw the King dressed in his casual attire, from the days when he roamed the country as "Erston".
"Gaius, you made it!" Leia grinned from ear to ear, opening her room door and ushering the man in. Gaius nodded curtly, having a seat at the couch Leia had indicated.
"I have to admit I was a bit surprised when you extended a personal invitation to me, Leia." Gaius finally turned around and faced the younger woman, who smiled reassuringly, and joined him in the seating area.
"Well Karla asked me to make sure that you weren't too busy to eat well, and it's my goal to keep that promise!" Leia said cheerfully, pouring a cup of tea for Gaius. She added two cubes of sugar and slid it over to him, before making her own cup.
"Ah. Well, I thank you for that." Gaius gave her a grateful smile and Leia felt a twinge of guilt for what she was about to do to him.
"Oh, of course! It's no problem! Really!"
A polite knock on the door signaled the arrival of their food. A maid wheeled in a cart with two silver cloches on it. Leia stood up and motioned for the small table that sat near the window of her sitting room, and Gaius nodded again, relocating to the new space.
The maid quietly set down both silver domes, uncovering the beef bowls that Leia had prepared herself. She curtsied before the two of them and quietly left the room, giggling to herself.
"I hope you like it! It took a while to convince the palace chef to let me use the kitchen, but he finally did! It's a recipe from my family's inn."
Gaius looked down at the bowl in front of him, then glanced back up at Leia, a look of awe and absolute appreciation in his eyes.
"I'm honored that you would spend so much time to prepare this for me."
"Oh, don't mention it!"
If Gaius had been paying attention, he'd notice the glint of mischief in Leia's eyes. He'd realize that he had just stepped into a trap that he never would have even thought possible.
Gaius took a huge spoonful of rice and beef, carefully placing it in his mouth, chewing slowly as the food was still piping hot.
Leia gave a small smile and did the same, though her bite was much smaller. She reached for another spoonful, before turning her gaze to the king sitting across from her, "So Gaius, what do you think?"
"Wow Leia, this is really goo-" In mid-sentence, Gaius' face turned completely red and he looked up at Leia frantically in panic and alarm.
Leia set her spoon down, carefully, and stood up from her seat, an unreadable expression on her face, "Gaius, I'm sorry to do this to you. I put three different types of pepper in these beef bowls."
Placing her arm on the King's shoulder, whose eyes were beginning to fill with unshed tears, Leia swiftly pulled out a small carton of milk from her pocket. "I'll give this to you if you make a promise to me. Otherwise you can eat some more, or maybe the hot tea will help?"
With a sinister smile that was so unlike Leia, she pushed the cup of tea closer to Gaius, who glared at her with his eyes narrowed.
"You're not going to cry, are you?" Though her voice held a tinge of concern, Leia shook the milk in front of Gaius, jumping back quickly when he reached for the carton in her hand.
"You know, this never would have happened if you hadn't been avoiding me. I've been trying to have a sit down interview with you for months! I just want to write your story and tell the world how wonderful you are! Is that so wrong?" Leia was blushing before she could finish her speech, but Gaius wasn't even looking in her direction, as he had turned to face the window, his expression hidden.. His mouth was still on fire from the food and he really didn't want to aggravate it by speaking.
"Gaius, I am sorry for tricking you like this. But I need you to promise me that you'll have an interview with me soon! I know I said that I would wait for however long it too, but-!"
Leia's unscripted plea was cut short when the tanned man in front of her stood up abruptly from his chair. Taking another step back, Leia was shocked to find Gaius sporting a stoic expression and she couldn't help but wonder if he was angry at her for exploiting him like this. Gaius took another step forward, and Leia again took a step back, as he stalked closer to her.
Soon Leia found herself pressed up against the arm of the couch, with Gaius' arm blocking her from escape and his imposing figure looming over her.
"No."
Though he had only said a single word, Leia's heart shattered into a thousand pieces. She would never become a top reporter without this story!
"Gaius~!" Leia began to protest but again her words were cut off as the handsome king leaned in closer to her and in one swift movement, grabbed her chin and pressed a chaste kiss into her mouth. With his other hand, he plucked the carton of milk from her relaxed grip, using her own surprise to steal the precious item from her.
Leia's wide brown eyes spoke a million words that her brain couldn't seem to formulate. Her entire face turned as red as one of the peppers she had used against Gaius.
He stepped away from her and turned his body completely, so that she wouldn't see him chug away at the milk greedily. By the time he was finished drinking the cooling liquid, the blush that stained his tanned cheeks was slowly fading as well.
"I was thinking that Rieze Maxia should have its own newspaper," though his back was still turned to Leia, Gaius could tell she was listening to him, as he felt her eyes on him. However, when she met his words with silence, he turned partially, if only to glance at the look on her face from the corner of his eye.
"W-What?!" Leia exclaimed finally, her face flushed from top to bottom. She was sure even her ears were red!
"If Rieze Maxia had its own newspaper, there would be no need for you to run to Elympios every day, correct?"
"Well….yes…" Leia wasn't quite sure what Gaius was getting at. If Rieze Maxia got its own newspaper, would she even want to work there?
"Then I shall discuss this matter with Rowen at once." Having said his piece, Gaius made his way towards the door in several quick strides. He needed to get out of this room, and quickly.
"B-But-"
With his hand on the door knob, Gaius looked directly into Leia's eyes, amusement and a little something else displayed on his face, "We really must do this more often."
And with those words, he opened the door and disappeared from sight.
Releasing a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, Leia slid down to the floor and leaned her head against the couch, her heart pounding in her chest. Hugging her knees to her chest, Leia groaned out loud, and then stretched back out, touching her fingers softly against her lips.
"What on earth was that all about?" She whispered softly to herself, feeling a very pronounced flutter in her chest.
Outside of Leia's room, Gaius had only made it down the hallway when he encountered Rowen.
"She's indeed a clever girl, is she not?" Though his voice sounded completely formal, Gaius could tell that Rowen was absolutely teasing him.
"Out of all the ridiculous things to learn from my sister…"
"Ah, but she certainly got your attention."
Gaius crossed his arms, as a chuckle escaped him, "That she most certainly did."
"Whenever are you going to tell her that you merely wish for her to stay in the palace?" Rowen looked up innocently at the king, though his tone of voice betrayed his amusement.
The King shrugged and continued on his way down the hall, "I thought you said she was clever, Rowen?"
"Indeed she is, Your Majesty."
THE END!
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